1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a coil unloading and transporting apparatus for a coil mounted on a storage shaft. In manufacturing operations for large coils of metal, such as aluminum, brass, steel and the like, one begins with large coils of metal alloys. These coils can have a diameter of three to six feet or more, and weigh thousands of pounds. In order for these large coils of metal to be utilized in further manufacturing processes, they must be slit by a device termed a slitter into a group of coil segments having a width as small as several inches. Thus, the large coil is placed on a slitter, and may be cut into ten to fifteen narrow coils. During the process of slitting, the group of coils are wound on a horizontal storage shaft that is part of the slitting device.
The slit coils are heavy and cumbersome to move from the storage shaft where they are stored horizontally to a pallet where they are stored vertically and separated from each other by spacer between each coil.
One prior art apparatus for removing slit coils from the storage shaft of a slitter rewinder is a coil car. In essence, the coil car is moved adjacent the storage shaft, and the coil car has an arcuate bed for receiving the group of coils as it is pushed off of the storage shaft of the slitter rewinder. Once the coil is on the coil car, this coil car is moved to a remote location where it is unloaded by a stationary apparatus referred to as a down-ender. The coil car is an expensive piece of equipment, and additional material-handling apparatus is required, such as down-ender, to remove the slit coils from the coil car.
Thus, it is an object of the present invention to provide a coil unloading and transporting apparatus that will automatically and in rapid motion unload the group of slit coils from the storage shaft, move the slit coils quickly away from the storage shaft, move the slit coils from a horizontal to a vertical position wherein they can be separated and loaded onto pallets.
It is a further object of the invention to provide an apparatus by which the group of slit coils can, once they are in a vertical position, be quickly transported laterally to an elongate conveyor where the coils may be separated and loaded onto a pallet for delivery to the ultimate user.
It is a further object of the invention to provide an apparatus which can unload a coil, transport the coil, and be prepared to receive another coil in a short period of time.